Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1887-11-03
STUDIES IN HOTELS.
Queer Characters Who Pose rs Guests Z
Eir.f-l.In.z Ne. w York iInteIs

Queer Characters Who Pose rs Guests Of
Fir~t-Ciass New York hotels
No more remarkable and cosmopoli-
tan types of the genus man can be
found in the world than stamps the
| corridors of the New York hotels. An
observing man can lose himself in a
labyrinth of mysterious cogitations in
ten minutes if he tries to guess the
identity and purposes of even ten per
cent. of the men who regularly fire.
quent the popular portions of the big
New York hotels. There is vast diff
ference between the man who is con-
stantly seen about the corridors and
the man who lives regularly and do
mestically ut the hotel. The latter
comes uptown from business. hurries
to his room and is invisible about the
house again until breakfast next MORN
ing. except in very rare instances. OF
course there are hotel hermits, but
these men are exceptions. AS rule
the regular guests are strangers to the
office and the public part of the house.
The hotel hermit is q distinct crea-
ton. l have one in view now. He has
lived for sixteen years at one of the
most prominent of the Broadway
hotels. and in that time it is doubtful il
he has been away from the house more
than ten consecutive hours. He is a
heavy-jawed, red-faced creature. with
sluggish eyes, ponderous belly and
lazy movements. He rises about ten
O'Clock, spends half an hour over his
boots, another half hour with the
barber. and then talks to the
hall boys, telegraph clerks, bartenders
and other employees of the house
who will take the trouble to listen to
him. After this he poses for half an
hour on a particular flagstone, with
his shoulders against certain portion
of the portico. If anybody happens to
be standing in that place he waits pa
tiently until he has chance to take UP
his favorite position. He has partic-
ular chair by 4 certain window in the
dining-rOom, and here he breakfasts
slowly for an hour ormore. After that
he resumes his position in front of the
house or if it is raining takes up GER
tain fixed space on particular bench
in the corridor. His life is the acme OF
monotony; he naturally has few
friends, for he never ventures ont in the
world and his life and talk are tiresome
to contemplate and hear. 1t is impos-
sible even to get him to attend the
theater He undoubtedly does pre-
cisely as he wishes to do and the whole
world is willing that he should devote
himself to his fascinating pursuit of
hotel immolation.
The men who constantly challenge
conjecture are the well-dressed. gen
tlemanly-appearing and polished men
of the world who have their mail adj
dressed to the principal hostelries,
who make all their appointments there
and who occasionally dine i'll the hotel
restaurants, but who never actually
live in the house. No man knows
where they do live either, for their go
ings and comings are as mysterious as
the much discussed merits of a good
yachting breeze the day before Il race.
Some of these men of the world are
projectors of railroads. others own
more or less pretentious patent rights
and some are adventures pure and
simple who trade upon the lesser intel
ligence of their fellows. Not infre-
quently the great wheel of fortune
throws one or the other to the top and
the schemer and manipulation of yester-
day is the millionaire of to-day
Blakely Hall, IN PhaladekI1hiG Press.
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